Serve
by Kate Rosen
Summary: For Provenza and all the rest of us who are wondering how that first date between Sharon and Andy went, here is my take.


**A/N:** This is my first Major Crimes story. Please let me know what you think by leaving a review. Many thanks to my editor, Labyrinth01. Your help is invaluable. I hope everyone enjoys!

 **Disclaimer:** These characters are not mine. I'm just borrowing them for awhile.

* * *

 **Serve** **by Kate Rosen**

 _Listen, since it's calmed down here, what do you say to dinner tomorrow night at Serve? It's new, it's nearby, and people say, well, people say it's one of the most romantic places in Los Angeles._

Romantic.

She could barely believe it when he'd said it. She had almost said _no_ but instead _fine_ had slipped out. When she heard herself say it, she liked the way it sounded, and in an involuntary smile took hold of her lips. She had to quickly get away from him at that point with the excuse of needing to find Andrea Hobbs so that he wouldn't see her giggling like a teenager.

What was the big deal anyway? They had been to dinner plenty of times. Why did this feel different?

 _Romantic_. That's what made it different. He'd never used that word before.

What the hell was she going to wear?

Sharon didn't remember stressing about an outfit this much since her college sorority days. She was confident in herself. She knew how to dress, and she thought she had a pretty good sense of style, but the word romantic had thrown her for a loop.

She was going on a date, an honest-to-God date, with Andy Flynn. There was no explaining this evening away as a family event, a friendly dinner, or grabbing a bite after work.

Sharon couldn't remember when she'd last been on a real date. While her children were young, it just wasn't possible. She was basically a single parent, after all, and the state of her marriage was always so up in the air. Jack waltzed in and out of their lives at his leisure, and she never knew how long he'd be gone or when he'd be back. She'd occasionally let him back into her bed during those years, but it was only out of loneliness and physical need. She hadn't had those kinds of feelings for him in a very long time.

After the kids were out of the house and she was on her own for a while, she hadn't exactly lived as a nun, but she never developed any serious relationships. Her own sense of self-preservation mixed with Catholic guilt over her few encounters with men prevented that from happening. And, of course, she hadn't seen anyone since Rusty came into her life. But feeling giddy over a date? Going out with someone that she could actually picture having a relationship with? That was something that she hadn't experienced in years. What the hell was she doing?

She stopped and took a deep breath. _It's just Andy_ , she thought.

Scanning her closet, she narrowed down her choices to just dresses. _A black dress_ , she thought. _Keep it simple._ Now she just needed to decide which one.

* * *

 _Ding!_

The sound of the elevator announcing its arrival on Sharon's floor startled Andy, who was lost in his own thoughts. He was overthinking things. Cradling the flower arrangement that he had so carefully selected, he strode with purpose toward the door to her condo. He had considered buying a dozen red roses, but he decided that it would have been too much. Instead he'd gone with a simple arrangement in purples and blues—two of her favorite colors.

He paused when he reached her door and smoothed down the front of his suit. He'd chosen one of his nicer ones, not one he'd normally wear to work, with a crisp white shirt and blue tie.

As he moved his fist to knock, the door flew open before he could make contact with it.

Rusty Beck surveyed the lieutenant slowly. His eyes paused on the flower arrangement, but he didn't comment.

"Hi," he greeted him curtly.

"Hey, kid."

"She's almost ready. I'm, uh, going to the library," he spoke deliberately, then grabbed his keys and adjusted his backpack on his shoulder.

"Could you, um, let her know I'm here before you leave?" Andy didn't want to startle her. With Rusty on his way out, she would be expecting her home to be empty.

Rusty sighed and threw his head back dramatically. "Sharon!" he shouted, "Lieutenant Flynn is here!" He turned to Andy, plastering on a smile. "Anything else?"

Andy smirked. "That's all, thanks. Have fun"

Rusty simply nodded at the lieutenant before moving past him to the elevator. Andy could have sworn that he heard the teenager mumble something about "old people" and "dating," but chose to ignore it, shaking his head in amusement. He hoped that Rusty's misgivings were just a normal teenage response to a parent dating and not something that ran deeper or would cause friction between the two of them. He heard Rusty's elevator arrive as he softly closed the condo door behind him.

"Sharon?" he called.

"I'll be out in a minute, Andy. Make yourself comfortable," she answered from her bedroom.

"Take your time. Our reservation is not for another half hour."

Andy surveyed the room before taking a seat on the couch, cradling the flowers in his lap. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly through pursed lips. He wished he had a toothpick right about now, but that wasn't the way that he'd want to greet Sharon this evening. Still, he was nervous. It was one thing to hang out with Sharon casually and imagine what it would be like to be more than friends. It was another situation entirely to actually be going on an honest-to-God date with her.

He couldn't believe her response when he'd asked.

 _Fine._

It was so casual. He expected there to be an analysis of the situation. He had expected her to carefully weigh the options. He hadn't even been sure that she would say yes. But she had, and so easily. He had been dreaming about this moment for a long time. Ever since they had attended Nicole's wedding together he knew that he had it bad.

 _"_ _Well, there you are." Sharon's emerald eyes sparkled up at him from her seat at their table._

 _"_ _Yes, sorry I was just..." he began as he took his seat beside her, but she stopped him with a gentle touch to his arm._

 _"_ _Don't worry about it, Andy. I'm fine. It's your daughter's wedding and you're the host; you need to mingle. Besides, Julie and I have been enjoying getting to know one another. She has been telling me some very interesting stories about you as a boy." She bit her bottom lip to suppress a smile, and Andy looked over to see his sister grinning mischievously. Julie didn't smile as much as she used to, ever since her bout with thyroid cancer. Andy rarely got a glimpse of the old Julie, the goofy kid sister that he remembered, but she was definitely present today._

 _"_ _Oh really?" he teased with his eyebrows raised. "I bet I could tell a few stories about Julie, too. Let me see… did she happen to mention the time that she and her boyfriend—what was his name, Colin or Kevin something? Anyway, he took her on his motorcycle—Ouch!" he yelled as Julie punched his arm playfully. "What? You can tell stories, and I can't?"_

 _"_ _Yup. It's so unfair for you, isn't it?" She teased._

 _Just then, the music changed and a slow song began to play. Julie's eyes lit up. "Dance with me, Andy. Is that okay?" she turned to ask Sharon. "I hate to steal him away when he's only just sat down."_

 _"_ _Absolutely," Sharon answered. "Dance with your brother." She picked up her small, beaded bag and stood up. "I'm going to step out into the hall and call to check in with Rusty. I'll be right back." As she passed Andy, she put her arm on his shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze._

 _Julie took her brother's hand and pulled him to the dance floor. Andy acted like he had to be dragged, but the truth was that he was glad to see her looking so happy and full of life today. He'd have to thank Sharon for that later. She certainly had had a hand in it._

 _Andy put his hand around his sister's waist and clasped his other with hers._

 _Julie smiled up at her brother before leaning in to whisper in his ear, "She's amazing, Andy. Where did you find her?"_

 _"_ _She's, uh," Andy stuttered. He was going to explain that she was his boss, they were just friends, or a combination thereof, but instead he responded, while barely holding back a grin, "She found me."_

* * *

 _"_ _All right, ladies and gentlemen, this will be our last dance of the evening before we send Nicole and Dean off on their honeymoon, so make this one count."_

 _Julie elbowed Andy gently, but he didn't budge so she did it again more forcefully._

 _"_ _Ouch, Jules, what was that for?" he asked, rubbing the abused arm._

 _She kept her voice low. "Andy, you've danced with me, Nicole, her new mother-in-law, your niece Amanda, and even your ex-wife for half a song. I think it's time you danced with your actual date once before the evening is over." She tilted her head toward Sharon, who was sitting across the table in conversation with Julie's husband Tony and completely oblivious to what was going on._

 _"_ _Well, uh," Andy stammered, but Julie wouldn't hear it._

 _"_ _Go," she mouthed as she stood and moved to gently tug on her husband's arm. "Excuse me, Sharon, but my husband promised me at least one dance this evening."_

 _"_ _Oh, no, please do," Sharon smiled at them, not noticing the man who had just moved to stand beside her._

 _"_ _Shall we?" Andy asked, summoning all the courage he had and trying to look nonchalant as he offered his hand to her._

 _Sharon turned toward him and reached out her hand with a smile. "I thought you'd never ask."_

 _The first thing Andy noticed was how warm and soft her hand was as he led her to the dance floor, and he hoped that his wasn't too sweaty. It's not that he hadn't wanted to dance with her, it was just that he had been so busy all evening and maybe just a little nervous. After all, she sort of took his breath away with how beautiful she looked and he had trouble reconciling some of the new feelings that he was having._

 _He'd always thought Sharon was good looking, but in an unattainable, admiring-from-a-distance sort of way. She was a married woman, well technically anyway, and his boss for one thing. Also, he had only recently begun to appreciate and respect her as a trusted colleague and no longer an adversary, like when she had worked in FID._

 _Now that she was in his arms and they were slowly swaying to the music, a whole new set of feelings were washing over him. She smelled incredible. It was some mixture of perfume and hair product that was intoxicating. He tried to play it cool, but the feel of her was almost too much. He wished he could think of something to say, but his throat was dry._

 _"_ _She looks so beautiful," Sharon whispered to him. For a second he didn't understand who Sharon was talking about. There was only one woman that he could see right now, but when she motioned with their clasped hands, he turned to look. Of course she was talking about Nicole. His daughter did look stunning, and not just because she was beautiful young woman, but her happiness seemed to be radiating off her all day and she had a warm glow about her._

 _"_ _Yeah, she does. And so happy," Andy added. "Dean is a really good guy, and a great father. I know he'll be good to her."_

 _Sharon smiled, and he couldn't help but smile back. "See, aren't you glad that you came?" she asked._

 _"_ _I can't believe that I almost missed this," he answered, though he wasn't just talking about his daughter's wedding._

"Andy?"

Andy came back to the present and looked up to see Sharon standing before him. It amazed him how conservatively she could dress and still be so damn sexy. Her black dress was fitted enough to show her curves without being too tight. The scoop neck was cut just low enough to show a hint of cleavage, but not too much as to leave nothing to the imagination, and the hem ended just above her knees. Her hair was down in loose waves with slightly more curl than usual, and she wore black pumps with a peep-toe to show off her red toenail polish. The only thing that was amiss was the unsure expression on her face.

"What's wrong, Andy?"

It was his fault for staring too long. He stood and smiled. "Nothing at all," he answered, shaking his head. "You look beautiful, Sharon."

She smiled back. "You don't look so bad yourself, lieutenant. Are those for me?" she motioned toward the flowers that he still held.

"Oh, yes, sorry." He offered them to her.

"I'll just put these in some water, and then we'll go, okay?"

The car ride to the restaurant was quiet, but not uncomfortably so. Andy and Sharon had spent enough time together that they didn't need to fill every moment with conversation. Andy did wonder what she was thinking, though. She was so skilled at hiding her emotions, but he was getting better at reading her. Her hands were always a dead giveaway. Just now she was fidgeting, and he knew that if her dress had pockets, which it did not, she would have her hands in them right now. He wanted to reassure her, to let her know that they were still Andy and Sharon, and the fact that they were on an actual date shouldn't make her nervous. When she casually laid her left arm on the armrest, he removed his right hand from the steering wheel and placed it atop hers. He stroked her open palm softly before intertwining their fingers. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed her shoulders visibly relax and her face soften into an easy smile.

* * *

"Did I say something wrong?" Andy asked.

Sharon looked uneasy. She took a sip of her wine and replaced the glass on the table before responding. "No, Andy, it's just…can we not talk about work tonight?"

"Oh, sh-sure," he stuttered, scratching the back of his ear nervously and feeling stupid. In an effort to fill the silence, he had brought up the case that they had just closed, which was not exactly great dinner conversation.

"I'm sorry," he began. "I was just trying to think of something to say, because it was so quiet, and it was the first thing that popped into my head."

"Andy, it's fine."

"No it's not, Sharon. I want us to have a good time tonight, and it's just kind of hard to think straight with you looking like that."

Sharon looked down at herself with an unsure expression on her face, and Andy knew he'd made a mistake again.

"Looking like what?" she inquired nervously, and he wanted to kick himself for making her feel self-conscious.

After rubbing his face in aggravation with himself, he moved to her side of the booth. She turned to him in confusion.

"Sharon, I…" he began. This time it was her turn to place her hand atop his to steady the shaking limb. He relaxed a little and continued. "I am an idiot. You are perfect."

She shook her head, "Andy, I'm not."

"To me you are. And I wanted so much for tonight to go well that I think maybe I'm trying too hard. I thought I had everything planned out, and then when I saw you tonight, you sorta took my breath away."

Sharon was beginning to get a similar feeling of breathlessness and brought a hand to her chest in an effort to regain composure. Andy detected the faintest shine of tears beginning to form in her eyes.

Taking a breath, she smiled and said, "Let's start over."

He smiled back and brought her hand to his lips. She had the softest skin he had ever felt. "Okay," he answered, then moved back to his seat. "What would you like to talk about, Sharon?"

"Hmm," she pondered a minute before asking, "How are your kids?"

Andy's eyes lit up at the mention of his children. Sharon loved the way he became so animated when talking about them, especially his daughter Nicole. She could see the pride and love in his eyes anytime she was mentioned. He was proud of his son Drew also, but he was still mending his relationship with him, and they were slowly getting to know one another again.

"I had dinner with Drew last week."

"That's so great Andy. Why didn't you tell me?"

He shrugged. "We've been busy lately and haven't had much time together. It was a really good visit. We met for burgers, and he talked a lot about his girlfriend Sarah. Did you meet her at Nicole's wedding?"

Sharon nodded. She remembered how hesitant Drew was when approaching Andy that day, but he and Sarah seemed like a nice couple.

"They've been together for almost four years now," Andy continued. "She really wants to get married, but he has been hesitant. I don't think it has anything to do with her, though. I think he's just a little apprehensive because of his mother and me, you know."

"Yeah, I know," Sharon added. "I worry about my kids, too, in that regard. They didn't exactly have the greatest example of what a healthy relationship should look like."

"But, I think he's coming around. He says that he sees Nicole and Dean together and how happy they are, and even his mom and her husband. I mean, they've been together for 15 years now. Anyway, we talked a lot, he asked about you, and, well, I think he might be planning on asking her soon. So, I might need a date for another wedding at some point…" he trailed off, but flashed a half smile in her direction.

"Well, you know how I love weddings."

* * *

The drive home was much more comfortable. They were more relaxed, having had a great time at dinner, but Andy's palms began to sweat as they got closer to Sharon's apartment. He rubbed his left hand on his pant leg as he pulled into the parking garage in what he hoped was a discreet manner. He'd gone over the conversation that he wanted to have with Sharon tonight about a thousand times in the past 24 hours, but at the present moment he couldn't remember any of what he wanted to say.

After he put the car in park, he turned toward Sharon, but she was already moving to open her door. Panicking and thinking their evening would be over before he'd get to say what he needed to, he put a hand on her back to stop her.

"Sharon, wait," he pleaded. He was about to lose his nerve.

"What?" she asked gently.

"Can we talk for a minute?"

She shrugged. "I figured we would go up to my place and I would make tea or coffee, if that's okay?" she phrased it like a question. "Rusty was planning to meet a few friends for a late movie after he finished at the library." She glanced at her watch. "He shouldn't be home for at least another hour."

* * *

"Coffee or tea?" she asked when they were inside the condo.

"Whatever you want to make for yourself, I'll have," Andy answered, drying his palms on his pant legs once more. He moved to her living room and took a seat on one end of her couch.

Sharon felt like having tea, so she filled the kettle and put it on to boil, and then busied herself with gathering cups, sugar and creamer to put on a tray.

When everything was ready, she brought the tray over and placed it on the coffee table. Then she stepped out of her heels and moved to the other side of the couch. They each fixed their tea and easily slipped back into their conversation from dinner. Sharon caught Andy up with what was going on with Rick and Emily. He listened and laughed. They were putting off the conversation that needed to be had. When there was a lull, Andy gathered his strength.

"Listen Sharon, is getting late. Rusty will probably be home soon, but we really need to talk before that happens."

He inched ever so slightly closer to her, and Sharon put down her tea on the table.

"I had a good time tonight. I hope you did too," he began

"I always enjoy spending time with you, Andy."

"Me too, Sharon, and I want to keep spending time with you, but I also want to make something clear."

Sharon swallowed nervously. "What's that?"

"I don't want to be your friend."

Sharon's face fell.

"No, wait, that's not what I meant. The truth is that I don't want to be _just_ your friend." He reached for her hand. "The feelings that I have for you are so much more than friendship, and I don't want to hide them anymore."

Andy waited a beat, then slowly he moved his hand to graze her cheek, and Sharon closed her eyes as a shiver ran through her. Her heart was pounding. She felt like she should say something, but she was at a loss for words. She felt his hand move to slide her glasses gently off her face, and when she opened her eyes she saw him rest them on the coffee table.

Turning to face her again, he cupped her face and stroked her cheek softly with the pad of his thumb. She leaned into his touch, fighting the urge to close her eyes. She wanted to be fully present in this moment.

Andy moved closer and placed soft kisses on Sharon's forehead and cheeks. He pulled back just slightly to gauge her expression. She gave a silent, almost imperceptible nod, and Andy took it as permission to continue, moving to brush her lips ever so slightly with his own. He felt Sharon shudder slightly at the sensation, and that was all the encouragement that he needed.

Moving his hand into her hair, he deepened the kiss. A sigh escaped Sharon's throat as she moved her hand to stroke the back of his neck. His kiss was intoxicating, like an alcoholic beverage she couldn't name, even though she knew that liquor had absolutely nothing to do with it. She couldn't remember a simple kiss ever being so pleasurable.

It was over far too soon, but Andy knew they needed to pace themselves. He slowly pulled back, but didn't yet remove his hand from her face. They both fought to slow their breath.

"Andy," Sharon began after a few moments of silence between them. "If this is going to happen between us, there need to be some rules."

Andy raised his brows at her. "Rules? Why am I not surprised?" He smirked in that cocky, uniquely Andy way, and Sharon couldn't help but smile back.

"First, we need to report our relationship to Taylor."

"Ugh, Taylor? Really?" Andy slumped back. He didn't see how it was any of his business. The smug bastard would probably lord it over them every chance he had.

"He's our immediate supervisor, Andy. That is LAPD policy."

He frowned like a child. Sharon rolled her eyes and offered, "Ok, how about I make you a deal?"

Andy looked up at her, intrigued. "I'm listening."

"I'll tell Taylor. You tell Provenza."

Andy snickered. "Oh, he'll get a kick out of this, I can assure you. All right, what else, Captain?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "We need to keep it professional at work. Don't think you're going to be treated any differently because we're in a relationship. If anything, I'll probably need to be harder on you."

"Harder on me then you are now?" he teased. She smacked him playfully.

"No PDA at the office or when Rusty is home."

"PDA? What are we, in high school?"

"I'm serious, Andy. It can't happen at work, and I don't want to make Rusty uncomfortable."

"Anything else? Should I be writing this down? Do I have to sign something?"

"No," she shook her head, but then became serious. "There's one more thing."

Andy took her hand and stroked the back of it gently with his thumb. He could tell she was struggling with something. "What is it, Sharon? I was only teasing."

She exhaled slowly. "I need us to take things slowly. I, I'm not ready for you to, um."

"Spend the night?" he finished for her. She nodded in reply, casting down her eyes.

"Hey, hey," he called softly, raising her chin so their eyes met. "I wasn't expecting that to happen yet, anyway. There's no rush." The truth was he wasn't surprised, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't disappointed. He'd been pining over the woman before him for almost two years, and to suddenly have her so close but to have to hold back was almost physically painful.

Sharon's expression softened. "It's just that I—"

"You don't have to explain, Sharon. You're worth waiting for." She made a face at him, so he added, "No really, I'm not just giving you a line. I've waited almost two years for that kiss there, and let me tell you..."

"It was pretty great, wasn't it?" she smiled. She looked ready to kiss him again, right now, but the clock on her wall ticked menacingly.

"Listen, Andy, I don't mean to kick you out, but Rusty will be home any minute."

"No, no, you're right. I should get going." They both stood and he moved to pick up the tray on the coffee table.

"No, it's okay. I'll get it," she insisted and followed him to her door.

"So, tomorrow's Saturday. Do you have plans for breakfast?"

"I do not. Did you want to meet at that diner near your place?"

"Sure." He stopped and smiled. "Until tomorrow, then." He brushed her arm gently. He wanted so badly to kiss her again, but he was afraid that if he started he wouldn't be able to stop. Before he could think, though, she was standing on tiptoe and placing a kiss on his lips. He smiled at her having initiated the contact. He opened her door, but turned back before walking through it.

"Good night, Sharon," he whispered.

"Good night, Andy," she answered, leaning against the door frame. He tried to burn into his mind the image of her standing there looking so beautiful with her flushed cheeks, slightly tousled hair, and kiss-swollen lips before turning toward the elevator.

Yes, he'd definitely need a cold shower tonight. He was no stranger to them, especially over the past two years, but tonight would be different. Tonight was a night filled with promise, and now he had the memory of her kiss to replay in his mind. There would be more kisses, he was sure of it, and one day soon, maybe more.


End file.
